Woman gored in leg by wild boar while walking dog

A 55-year-old woman walking her dog was gored in the leg by a wild boar at Windsor Park on Friday night and received 60 stitches for her 10cm-long wound.

Ms Ding Yichun, who is from Taiwan, told Shin Min Daily News in a report yesterday that she was walking her dog at about 6pm when a wild boar emerged from the surrounding trees and attacked her.

The housewife said the animal was more than a metre long and had two long tusks.

“I was shocked and could not react in time, so I was hit by the boar and felt a sharp pain in my right leg before falling,” she said.

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The boar gored her right leg before running back into the brush. Two maids later helped her.

Ms Ding also suffered several abrasions from the fall.

Ms Ding Yichun with a photo of the 10cm-long wound on her right leg. She said the wild boar that attacked her was more than a metre long and had two long tusks. “I was shocked and could not react in time, so I was hit by the boar and felt a sharp pain in my right leg before falling,” she said. PHOTO: SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS

The Singapore Civil Defence Force told The Sunday Times yesterday that it was alerted to the case at 6.55pm on Friday and dispatched an ambulance to Windsor Park Hill.

Ms Ding was kept under observation at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and left at midnight that day.

She had arrived in Singapore last month to visit her grandchild and help look after her daughter.

Mr Kalai Vanan, deputy chief executive officer of Animal Concerns Research & Education Society (Acres), told The Sunday Times that wild boars “are very shy animals that would usually run away when sighted”.

“The animal in this case may have been surprised or felt provoked, causing it to charge,” he said. “The presence of the pet dog may have been a reason for the animal to feel provoked as well.”

He said wildlife conflict cases “are rare occurrences in Singapore and the location of this particular place is important to take note as Windsor is at the fringe of the nature reserve”. Windsor Park is one of five buffer parks at the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.

Mr Wong Tuan Wah, group director of conservation at the National Parks Board, told The Sunday Times that NParks was alerted to the incident along Venus Walk and is investigating the matter.

“NParks advises the public to remain calm and move slowly away from wild boars should they encounter any,” he said. “Keep a safe distance from them, and do not approach or attempt to feed them. Ensure that young children and pets are kept away as they may be curious and approach the boars.”

He referred the public to NParks’ website for more information on what to do when encountering wild boars.

Wild boars are native animals of Singapore and can weigh up to 100kg and live for more than 20 years. Just last month, a big herd of wild boars was seen swarming a bus interchange in Tuas.

Both NParks and the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority of Singapore have advisories on their websites on what to do when encountering a wild boar.

Here are some guidelines:

•Be calm and move slowly away from the animal. Do not approach or attempt to feed the animal.

•Keep a safe distance and do not corner or provoke the animal such as by using a flash while taking pictures of it.

•If you see adults with young piglets, leave them alone. These are potentially more dangerous because they may attempt to defend their young.